The Latest: Dallas attack suspect served in Army Reserve

DALLAS &GT;&GT; The Latest on the shooting of police officers in Dallas (all times local):

12:20 p.m.

WASHINGTON &GT;&GT; The Army says Micah Xavier Johnson, named as a suspect in the Dallas police shootings, served in the Army Reserve and did one tour of duty in Afghanistan.

The Army says Johnson was a private first class and his home of record is Mesquite, Texas. His military occupational specialty was carpentry and masonry.

His service dates, as provided by the Army, are March 2009 to April 2015.

The Army says Johnson deployed to Afghanistan in November 2013 and returned in July 2014.

12:15 p.m.

One of the organizers of the downtown Dallas protest where five police officers were shot and killed says he doesn't recognize a man identified as a suspected shooter.

Pastor Jeff Hood said Friday that he had never heard of 25-year-old Micah Johnson. A law enforcement official told The Associated Press that Johnson is the suspect who died in a lengthy overnight standoff with police.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because he said he was not authorized to release the information. Dallas Police Chief David Brown says the suspect in the standoff had told police he was acting alone and wasn't affiliated with a group.

Hood says he began screaming "active shooter!" at hundreds of fellow demonstrators once gunfire erupted at the march to protest the recent fatal shootings of black men in Minnesota and Louisiana.

Associated Press writer Will Weissert contributed to this report.

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11:55 a.m.

Former President George W. Bush says he and former first lady Laura Bush are heartbroken about the fatal shooting of five police officers in Dallas.

Praising the professionalism of the city's police department, Bush said in a statement Friday from his ranch in Crawford, Texas, that the couple is also praying for the seven officers who were wounded in the attack Thursday. Two civilians were also wounded and police killed a suspect.

He says, "Murdering the innocent is always evil, never more so than when the lives taken belong to those who protect our families and communities."

Bush congratulated the city's leaders on their response to the shootings and says he is proud to call Dallas his home.

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11:50 a.m.

Some Black Lives Matter supporters are condemning the slayings of police in Dallas during a protest over fatal police shootings of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota.

New York Daily News columnist Shaun King says on Twitter that he hates police brutality but doesn't hate police. He says: "This violence is wrong on every level."

She writes that it "advocates dignity, justice and freedom, not the murder of cops." King says anyone blaming Black Lives Matter "is sick." He says protesters were peaceful and the shootings "terrorized them too."

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11:45 a.m.

A former Illinois congressman is standing by a Twitter post he sent after the fatal shooting of police officers in Dallas in which he warned President Barack Obama to "Watch out."

Joe Walsh told The Associated Press on Friday that he didn't intend to incite violence against Obama or anyone else. He says "that's just stupid" and "would be wrong and reprehensible."

The one-term Republican congressman and radio host from suburban Chicago posted the tweet after five police officers were killed and seven wounded during a protest of fatal shootings by police in Louisiana and Minnesota.

His tweet read: "This is now war. Watch out Obama. Watch out black lives matter punks. Real America is coming after you."

The post has been deleted.

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11:40 a.m.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is assisting in the investigation into a shooting in downtown Dallas that left five police officers dead.

The agency said Friday that it won't immediately release information about the type of weapons used in the attack during a demonstration Thursday to protest the killing of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota by white police officers.

Officers at the scene of the shooting say some kind of rifle was used.

Weapons such as the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle are easy to fire and generally accurate. Little or no training is required to fire such weapons and they are widely available.

Seven officers and two civilians were also wounded in the attack.

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11:30 a.m.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch is calling for peace and calm in the wake of the attack on police officers in Dallas, saying that violence is never the answer.

Lynch said Friday at the Justice Department in Washington that it has been a week of heartbreak and loss for the nation.

Five police officers were killed by gunfire in Dallas Thursday night at a peaceful protest march prompted by the shootings by police of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota.

Lynch says the spate of violence can't be allowed to "precipitate a new normal." Calling the Dallas attack "an unfathomable tragedy," she says those concerned about suspect killings by police should not be discouraged "by those who use your lawful actions as a cover for their heinous violence."

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11:15 a.m.

Investigators can be seen walking in and out of a suburban Dallas house believed to be that of a man suspected in the overnight attack that killed five Dallas police officers and wounded seven others.

About a half-dozen police vehicles are parked outside the two-story brick home in Mesquite thought to be that of Micah Johnson.

Authorities haven't publicly disclosed the name of a suspect whom police killed with a robot-delivered bomb after negotiations failed. But a law enforcement official speaking on the condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information told The Associated Press that he was 25-year-old Micah Johnson.

Mesquite authorities say they were at the home to assist Dallas investigators.

Associated Press writer Will Weissert contributed to this report.

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10:50 a.m.

The president of the NAACP is calling for policies, not handwringing, in the wake of the deadly attack on police in Dallas.

Cornell William Brooks made the comment in an interview Friday on "CBS This Morning." He says that includes establishing a national standard for excessive use of force and federal laws that address police accountability and community trust.

The attack began Thursday night at a protest over recent killings by police of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota. Five officers were killed and seven others were wounded. Two civilians were also wounded and police killed a suspect.

Brooks says citizens are afraid and capturing more fatal shootings by police on video due to a minority of officers "who defile the profession by their conduct."

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10:20 a.m.

A robotics expert says Dallas police appear to be the first law enforcement agency to use a robot to kill.

Peter W. Singer, of the New America Foundation, says the killing of a suspect in Thursday night's fatal shooting of five police officers is the first instance of which he's aware of a robot being used lethally by police.

Dallas Police Chief David Brown told reporters that after hours of failed negotiations and in order to not put any officers in harm's way, his department used a robot to deliver a bomb that killed the suspect. Brown said they saw no other option.

Singer said in an email Friday that when he was researching his 2009 book "Wired for War" a U.S. soldier told him troops in Iraq sometimes used MARCbot surveillance robots against insurgents.

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10:10 a.m.

A Texas law enforcement official has told The Associated Press that a slain suspect in the attack on Dallas police was 25-year-old Micah Johnson.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because he said he was not authorized to release the information. There were no immediate details on the suspect's middle name or hometown.

The attack began Thursday night during a protest about the recent killings by police of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota. Five officers were killed and seven others were wounded. Two civilians were also wounded.

Police Chief David Brown said Friday that his department used a robot-delivered bomb to kill a suspect after hours of negotiations failed. He says the suspect expressed anger over recent killings by police of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota.

Associated Press writer Will Weissert contributed to this report.

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9:40 a.m.

House Speaker Paul Ryan says anger over the police shootings in Dallas must not be allowed to harden the nation's divisions.

Speaking Friday on the House Floor, Ryan said that "justice will be done."

He says it's been a "long month for America" and that the nation has seen terrible and senseless things.

But he says that in debating how to respond, "let's not lose sight of the values that unite us, our common humanity."

Ryan says: "A few perpetrators of evil do not represent us; they do not control us."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi took the floor after Ryan, joining in his expression of grief and thanking Dallas police officers for their service.

Pelosi says: "Justice will be done, justice must be done. Also mercy must be done."

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9:10 a.m.

Dallas' police chief says a suspect in the deadly overnight attack on police officers told negotiators that he acted alone and was unaffiliated with any group.

Chief David Brown said at a news conference Friday that the suspect also said he was upset about recent police shootings and wanted to kill white people, particularly white officers.

He says officers killed the suspect with a robot-delivered bomb after hours of negotiations failed.

Although Brown says the suspect said he acted alone, it remains unclear if that was the case. He said earlier Friday that three other suspects were in custody, but he later declined to discuss those detentions and said police still didn't know if investigators had accounted for all participants in the attack.

The attack began Thursday night during a protest about the recent killings by police of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota. Five officers were killed and seven others were wounded. Two civilians were also wounded.

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8:45 a.m.

The Dallas transit police chief says an officer who was fatally shot during a downtown protest was a newlywed whose bride also works for the police force.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit police Chief James Spiller described Officer Brent Thompson on Friday as a "courageous" and "great guy."

Thompson was among five police officers killed during a Thursday night demonstration to protest police shooting deaths of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota.

Spiller says Thompson got married two weeks ago. His wife, Emily, was not on duty at the protest.

The police chief last spoke to Thompson on Tuesday as they passed each other in a hallway. Spiller says he asked how the newlyweds were doing and how things were going with Thompson's job.

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8:15 a.m.

Mayor Mike Rawlings says a bullet went straight through the leg of one police officer as snipers fatally shot three members of his squad during a protest in downtown Dallas.

Rawlings, who says he spoke to the wounded officer, said Friday that the officer expressed sorrow at his loss and that he felt "people don't understand the danger of dealing with a protest."

The mayor says it's important to uphold the right of people to protest, but that more care needs to be taken to ensure the safety of police officers at such events.

Snipers shot and killed five police officers and wounded seven more at the demonstration Thursday evening to protest the police killing of black men in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and St. Paul, Minnesota. Two civilians were also injured.

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8:10 a.m.

Police Chief David Brown says authorities are still not certain that they have identified everyone involved in an attack on a downtown protest march that killed five police officers.

Brown said Friday that investigators have not ruled out that others may have been involved in the attacks that left a total of 12 officers and two civilians shot.

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings says an overnight standoff with one suspect in a parking garage ended when police detonated an explosive about four hours after the attack began. Authorities say the explosive was attached to a robot to protect officers.

Brown would not reveal any details about other potential suspects that have been detained by police and interviewed.

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7:55

Police Chief David Brown says a suspect in the overnight attack that killed five police officers, wounded seven others and wounded two civilians said he was upset over the recent police shootings of black men and wanted to kill white people.

Brown said at a news conference Friday that the suspect made the comments before he was killed by an explosive used by police.

He says his department and their families are grieving and that the divisiveness between police and the public must stop.

Authorities say snipers opened fire on police officers during a peaceful protest in downtown Dallas Thursday night over the recent fatal shootings of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota.

Authorities say three other suspects were arrested.

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7:25 a.m.

A man wrongly identified by Dallas police as a suspect in a sniper attack on police says he turned himself in and was quickly released.

The Dallas Police Department put out a photo on its Twitter account late Thursday of a man wearing a camouflage shirt and holding a rifle with the message: "This is one of our suspects. Please help us find him!" The tweet remained on the account early Friday morning.

The man in the photo, Mark Hughes, tells Dallas TV station KTVT that he "flagged down a police officer" immediately after finding out he was a suspect. He says police lied during a 30-minute interrogation, telling him they had video of him shooting.

Videos posted online show Hughes walking around peacefully during the shooting and later turning over his gun to a police officer.

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7:15 a.m.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit officials say three DART police officers wounded by snipers during a protest are expected to recover.

Thursday night's shootings left four Dallas police officers and one DART officer dead, plus seven other officers wounded. The demonstration was to protest two fatal police shootings of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota earlier this week.

A DART statement Friday identified the agency's three wounded personnel as 44-year-old Officer Omar Cannon, 32-year-old Officer Misty McBride and 39-year-old Officer Jesus Retana. DART spokesman Morgan Lyons did not release details of the injuries, but said all three should recover.

Officer Brent Thompson was the first DART officer killed in the line of duty since the transit agency formed a police department in 1989. Thompson was 43 and had worked as a DART officer since 2009.

Mayor Mike Rawlings says a total of 12 police officers and two civilians were shot during a protest march in downtown Dallas.

Rawlings said Friday that he does not believe that any of the wounded victims have life-threatening injuries.

He says five officers were killed and seven more were injured when snipers opened fire during protests over two recent fatal police shootings of black men.

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6:40 a.m.

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings says the suspect involved in an overnight standoff with police died after officers used explosives to "blast him out."

Rawlings said Friday that he was not sure how the suspect died or what weapons were found on him.

He says police have swept the area where the standoff took place and found no explosives.

Snipers opened fire on police officers in the heart of Dallas Thursday evening, killing five officers and injuring six others during protests over two recent fatal police shootings of black men.

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6 a.m.

People gathered in small groups on Dallas' tense, police-filled streets before dawn early Friday struggled to fathom the still-unsettled situation.

Resident Jalisa Jackson says: "I think the biggest thing that we've had something like this is when JFK died," evoking the November 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy on the city's streets. She calls it "surreal."

Police said at least four suspects were involved in the killings of five police officers just hours before. The suspects were not immediately identified.

Eleven Dallas officers were shot Thursday night during a peaceful protest over this week's fatal police shootings of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota in what the city's police chief characterized as a sniper attack.

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5:45 a.m.

Dallas police say no explosives have been found in extensive sweeps of downtown areas following the fatal shooting of five police officers and the wounding of six others by snipers.

Security was tight Friday morning with numerous streets closed to vehicle traffic in the main downtown Dallas business district hours after Thursday night's attacks.

The gunfire happened during protests over this week's fatal police shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota of two black men. Police have detained at least three people in the investigation of the Dallas shootings.

Police said a fourth suspect was engaged in a standoff with authorities and had made threats about bombs.

Maj. Max Geron (GAYR'-uhn) tweeted before dawn Friday that primary and secondary sweeps for explosives were complete and no explosives were found.

The gunfire claimed the lives of four Dallas police officers and one Dallas Area Rapid Transit officer. DART serves Dallas and a dozen other North Texas cities. The transit agency operates buses and the state's largest municipal rail system.

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5:20 a.m.

A memorial group says the slaying of five police officers in Dallas in an attack blamed on snipers was the deadliest day in U.S. law enforcement history since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Four Dallas police officers and one Dallas Area Rapid Transit officer were fatally shot Thursday night. The gunfire happened during protests over this week's fatal police shootings of two black men, in Louisiana and Minnesota.

Six other officers were wounded in the Dallas attacks.

The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, which monitors the deaths of officers, reports 72 officers were killed as a result of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. The group labels that attack as the deadliest day in U.S. law enforcement history.

President Barack Obama says America is "horrified" over the shootings of police officers in Dallas and there's no possible justification for the attacks.

Obama is speaking from Warsaw, Poland, where he's meeting with leaders of the European Union and attending a NATO summit.

Obama says justice will be done and he's asking all Americans to pray for the fallen officers and their families. He also says the nation should express its gratitude to those serving in law enforcement.

Snipers opened fire on police officers in the heart of Dallas Thursday evening, killing five officers and injuring six others during protests over two recent fatal police shootings of black men.

Obama said earlier there was no contradiction between supporting law enforcement and making certain biases in the justice system are rooted out.

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2:30 a.m.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit has identified its officer who was fatally shot when snipers opened fire during a downtown Dallas protest.

DART said early Friday morning that 43-year-old officer Brent Thompson was killed in the Thursday night shootings. He'd joined the DART Police Department in 2009.

DART says he's the first officer killed in the line of duty since the agency formed a police department in 1989. The statement says "our hearts are broken."

DART says the other three DART police officers shot during the protest are expected to recover from their injuries.

Also killed during the shootings were four Dallas police officers.

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2:10 a.m.

Police say a fifth officer has died after snipers opened fire on police at a rally in Dallas. Six other officers were injured.

The gunfire broke out Thursday night while hundreds of people were gathered to protest fatal police shootings this week in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and suburban St. Paul, Minnesota.

Dallas Police Chief David Brown said Three people are in custody and a fourth suspect was exchanging gunfire with authorities in a parking garage downtown early Friday.

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2 a.m.

A family member says a protester who was shot when snipers opened fire on police at a rally in Dallas was shielding her sons when she was injured.

A sister of 37-year-old Shetamia Taylor says Taylor was at the protests Thursday night with her four sons, ages 12 to 17. Theresa Williams says that when the shooting began, Taylor threw herself over her sons. She was undergoing surgery early Friday after being shot in the right calf.

Police say four police officers were killed and seven injured in the shootings. The shootings happened at a protest over recent fatal police shootings of black men.

Williams says two of Taylor's sons became separated from their mother in the chaotic aftermath. She says they're now stuck behind a police barricade at a hotel near a parking garage where police exchanged gunfire with a suspect.

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1:40 a.m.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says he's cutting short an out-of-state trip to go to Dallas after four police officers were killed and seven others injured when snipers opened fire during protests.

Abbott said in a release early Friday morning that he would be heading directly to Dallas. The shootings happened Thursday night in downtown Dallas.

Abbott also says he's spoken with Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings to express his condolences and offer any assistance the city needs.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas said in a statement that "our thoughts and prayers go out to these officers and their families, and to those who have been injured." He said his office is in close contact with local authorities and will be offering to provide whatever support they can to help victims and bring the "perpetrators to justice."

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1:15 a.m.

Dallas police say a person of interest whose picture had been circulated has turned himself in.

Police earlier had circulated a picture of a man in a camouflage T-shirt who carrying a long gun.

Police had no update on whether that person was indeed a suspect. However, Police Chief David Brown said authorities had three people in custody. One is a woman and two are people who were in a car stopped on a road.

A man who identified himself as the brother of the man whose photo was circulated says his brother was not one of the shooters. He told television station KTVT that once the shootings had started, his brother had turned the gun over to a police officer.

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12:50 a.m.

Dallas Police Chief David Brown says three people are in custody after snipers opened fire on police officers during protests and says a fourth person is exchanging gunfire with officers.

Brown said at an early Friday morning news conference that authorities are negotiating with a suspect in a downtown parking garage who has been exchanging gunfire with officials.

The chief says the suspect is not cooperating and has told negotiators he intends to hurt more law enforcement officials.

The shooting attack killed four officers and injured seven others. It came amid protests over two recent fatal police shootings of black men.

Brown says authorities are not certain all suspects have been located.

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12:30 a.m.

Dallas police say they are questioning two occupants of a vehicle after an officer saw a person throw a bag into the back of the vehicle and speed off.

Police said late Thursday night that an officer spotted someone carrying a camouflage bag and quickly walking down the street. The person then threw the bag into the back of a black Mercedes and sped off at a high rate of speed.

Police say officers followed the vehicle southbound on Interstate 35 to a point south of Dallas where they performed a traffic stop. Police then began questioning both occupants of the vehicle.

Television footage showed many police cars surrounding a vehicle stopped on Interstate 35.

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11:35 p.m.

Dallas police say a suspect in shooting of officers at Dallas protests is in custody and a person of interest has surrendered.

Dallas police say four officers have died after at least two snipers opened fire during protests downtown Thursday night. Seven other officers were wounded.

Police Chief David O. Brown said snipers shot from "elevated positions" during a protest over two recent fatal police shootings.

The gunfire broke out around 8:45 p.m. Thursday. Live TV video showed protesters marching along a street in downtown when the shots erupted and the crowd scattered, seeking cover.

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10:45 p.m.

The Dallas police chief says it appears two snipers shot 10 police officers during protests, and three of the officers are dead.

Police Chief David O. Brown said in a statement that three of the officers who were injured are in critical condition Thursday night. He says the snipers shot from "elevated positions" during a protest over two recent fatal police shootings.

The gunfire broke out around 8:45 p.m. Thursday. Live TV video showed protesters marching along a street in downtown when the shots erupted and the crowd scattered, seeking cover.

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